hayseed

[hey-seed]

noun

1. grass seed, especially that shaken out of hay.

2. small bits of the chaff, straw, etc., of hay.

3. an unsophisticated person from a rural area; yokel; hick.

hayseed

/ ˈheɪˌsiːd /

noun

1. seeds or fragments of grass or straw

2. informal,  a yokel

Word History and Origins

Origin of hayseed¹

First recorded in 1570–80; hay + seed

Example Sentences

The hayseed county that begat Richard Nixon and the boysenberry also bestowed the Righteous Brothers’ “blue-eyed soul” and the drive-in church upon the world.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

I, on the other hand, remain a philistine and a hayseed.

Read more on Washington Post

As a result, the gullible hayseeds of Zaks’s River City just have to sort of fall in line behind him.

Read more on Washington Post

“At a certain point you’re going to ask yourself, ‘Why are you in favor of lower taxes and less regulations so they can call us bigots and hayseeds and deplorables and tell lies about us?’”

Read more on Los Angeles Times

He chose his favored venue of the Aspen Ideas festival, where his transfixing hayseed act has been a perennial marquee attraction.

Read more on The Guardian

Related Words

• boor